A New Kingdom
by StarCatcher1858
Summary: Set after the Battle of Wu Territory. Sun Quan grew jealous towards his own brother, and set up a plan to kill him. Now Sun Ce is on the run.
1. Sun Quan's Plan

**A New Kingdom**

**A/n: This story is made by me and my little brother, who keeps on coming with awesome ideas but doesn't want to make an account on ... The idea of Sun Quan's plan comes from a Beijing opera where Sun Quan is the villain. Enjoy. **

**Chapter 1 :: Sun Quan's Plan**

**Disclaimer: Dynasty Warriors don't belong to me... Characters and battles belong to Koei, although Koei adopted it from the San Guo Yan Yi, so for short, everything belongs to Luo Guanzhong... xD**

Sun Ce, Zhou Yu and the others came home triumphantly from the Battle of Wu Territory. Everyone was tired, some were wounded, but they were happy. They had won the war.

"The battle was awesome, wasn't it, Zhou Yu," Sun Ce chattered happily, nodding towards his best friend Zhou Yu.

"Indeed," Zhou Yu nodded in agreement. Sun Ce drank from the wine bottle in his hand as they were walking in the corridors of the castle. "You are an amazing strategist!" he complimented.

"As you are an amazing fighter," Zhou Yu replied his friend's compliment.

"You and your spear are a strong unity," Zhou Yu said as they arrived in front of his room. "Ah, we've arrived to my room. Good night, my friend. I'll see you in the morning," Zhou Yu said as he entered his room.

Sun Ce continued on walking, as he passed in front of a hall. He stopped as he heard someone mentioning his name from inside the room.

"I shall assist you in assasinating Sun Ce," an unknown voice to Sun Ce spoke.

Sun Ce let out a quiet gasp as he heard. He frowned. Who was thinking of killing him? He was not able to peep inside the room, he was only able to listen the conversation outside. He sharpened his ears.

"I appreciate your will to assist me. You shall be rewarded handsomely." This time, Sun Ce was able to recognize the voice. It was none other than his own brother Sun Quan! He was surprised to hear that his own brother was willing to kill him -- no, he was surprised because Sun Quan _wanted _to kill him. Despite the shock, Sun Ce continued to eavesdrop the conversation between Sun Quan and the mysterious man.

"He has become an ambitious man, a threat to the future of our kingdom. You, My Lord, should be the most perfect person to become the King," the mysterious man said.

"I appreciate that, Yu Ji. You have my gratitude," Sun Quan replied. There was silence as Sun Quan eyed the only window in the room. "Ah, it's already midnight. So, it's tomorrow, isn't it? Well then, you shall be dismissed."

"Thank you very much, My Lord. I shall take my leave now," the man whom Sun Quan called Yu Ji answered as he walked towards the door. Sun Ce heard footsteps, and he decided to leave as quickly as possible. He walked quickly but silently to his room.

Sun Ce entered his room hastily, and approached his bed, which he shared with his wife Da Qiao.

"Da Qiao!" he whispered softly but clearly as he shook Da Qiao's sleeping form to wake her up.

"What's the matter, My Lord?" Da Qiao rose to a seated position as she rubbed her eyes, still feeling sleepy.

"We must make our leave now, Da Qiao. We must leave this castle, this land, right now!" Sun Ce answered hastily,

"What had happened?" Da Qiao asked sleepily."

"Sun Quan..." There was a pause between his words. "Sun Quan and a 'someone' named Yu Ji are planning to kill me!" he hissed as he stated the matter in disgust. Da Qiao gasped as she was surprised. "Pack our things now, and prepare some food. I shall take the weapons and prepare the horses. We would leave now, as Sun Quan said that he was going to execute his plan tomorrow night," Sun Ce said, avoiding the topic about Sun Quan's plan of killing him. As Da Qiao brought herself to her feet, Sun Ce exited the room and made his way to the weaponary, trying to be as quiet as possible. As he grabbed his pair of tonfa Overlord, his spear and Da Qiao's pair of fans Qiao Beauty. Then he rushed to the stable, meeting Da Qiao on the way. He took two of his favorite horses, two white trademark horses of the Sun family. He gestured for Da Qiao to ride one of the horses, while he himself climbed the other.

"Where would we go, Lord Sun Ce?" Da Qiao asked, half worriedly.

"Cao Cao recently made an alliance with us by marrying Sun Kuang with one of his nieces, right? Since allies help each other, I don't think he'd mind for us to stay with him for quite a while..." Sun Ce said, despite being unsure himself. "We shall head north," he continued. When they arrived at the castle gate, Sun Ce ordered the guards to open it, telling them that they had to go for an urgent business. The guards opened the gate without further questions.

The night was very quiet and was supposed to be peaceful. But as their horses ran through the darkness of the night, Sun Ce and Da Qiao began to feel this uneasiness stirring inside them. Despite the feeling, they kept on heading north towards Cao Cao's land.

Hours and minutes seemed to be passing so quickly to them. The starry night sky had become bright as the sun rose before they had realized it. They must have travelled around 250 li since their departure from the castle as they hadn't stopped for any rests. Sun Ce stopped his horse, followed by Da Qiao. Around them were big, strong trees, which indicated that they were in a forest. Sun Ce wiped the sweat on his face and decided, "Let us take some rest now!" Then he tied his horse to a nearby tree, followed by Da Qiao.

Meanwhile, in the Sun family castle, Sun Quan, who just woke up, found that Sun Ce had escaped with his wife. He summoned Zhou Yu and asked, " Zhou Yu, do you know where Brother had gone?"

Zhou Yu was confused. "What did you mean, Quan? He was with me last night... Well, at least he was, before we slept..."

Sun Quan shook his head angrily, "Brother had es-- gone. He wasn't in the castle this morning."

"Try to ask the maids and servants. They might know," Zhou Yu suggested.

"I have," Sun Quan replied. "They didn't know where Brother had gone."

"Try to ask the gate guards. Ce might have taken a walk, or gone hunting early in the morning..."

Sun Quan went to ask the gate guards. Two of the guards claimed that Sun Ce left the castle at midnight with Da Qiao, saying that they left for some urgent business. Sun Quan asked, "Where had they gone?"

One of them replied, "Lord Sun Ce and Lady Da Qiao had headed North".

Sun Quan was enraged. He dispatched Zhou Yu, Huang Gai, Taishi Ci and Lu Meng with 500 men to look for Sun Ce. Zhou Yu asked him, "Why so many people just to look for Sun Ce? It's not like he's a little mouse and would disappear from sight that easily..."

Sun Quan lied and said, "I was merely concerned about Brother's safety. He'd gone without saying anything."

After the four had left, Sun Quan let out an evil chuckle, while he looked for Yu Ji to discuss and make a "Plan B". He figured that Sun Ce might have overheard his yesterday's conversation with Yu Ji, and thus he needed to re-design everything.

**:: Chapter 1 :: End ::**

**A/n: How was it? Please review! Anyway, sorry for making Sun Quan a bastard. Once again, please be kind and review! This is our first story, and we need feedbacks!**

**Edit: Chapter edited on Monday, June 15th 2009. Thanks to Jenizaki for the helpful guide. **

**Note: 1 li = 500 m**


	2. Escape to the North

**A New Kingdom**

**A/n: Sorry for the long wait! I was banned from the computer for some reasons, so I wasn't able to update the story! I'm really really sorry!!! Anyway, thanks for your helpful review, Jenizaki. Chapter 1 edited, thanks for your 'guide'!!! And thanks to domtaco, Afrotaco, Jenizaki, freedomcall803 and Xiahou Ayumi for reviewing this story! And thanks again to Jenizaki and Xiahou Ayumi for putting this story in their favorite list!**

**And Ayumi, telling you about whether I will kill Sun Ce or not will spoil the whole story… But a clue is, Sun Ce's my favorite character! :D**

**Afrotaco, you'd find lots of cursing in the upcoming chapters XD And I'd try to make the chapters longer… I haven't been used to write long, long chapters like VraieEsprit does with her stories… (If you have ever read her stories). She's just too awesome :D**

**Chapter 2 :: Escape To The North ::**

**Disclaimer: ****Dynasty Warriors don't belong to me... Characters and battles belong to Koei, although Koei adopted it from the San Guo Yan Yi, so for short, everything belongs to Luo Guanzhong... xD**

Sun Ce took a bottle of water and drank. He grinned at his wife.

"We've traveled pretty far, eh? Don't think that bastard Quan would find us… Dammit, I would've never thought that he would turn against me!"

Da Qiao gave her husband a smile.

"Yes, it was indeed unpredictable. But… You were lucky that you had overheard his conversation, so we were able to escape in time…"

Sun Ce gave the water bottle to Da Qiao, who immediately drank.

"We were indeed lucky. But I have a feeling inside me saying that Quan would send someone to look for us… Because I don't think he'd be satisfied if we escape. So we should hurry. Once we arrive in Wei, Quan wouldn't be able to do anything."

Da Qiao nodded in agreement.

Sun Ce got up, and offered a hand to help Da Qiao up. The two of them climbed their horses, preparing to continue their journey.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Wei, a young Cao Pi was begging his father so he would be allowed to take a walk outside the gates of Wei.

"Please, Father! I've never been out of Wei! I've never even been out of this castle! How am I supposed to be the king someday when I don't even know what's going out there?" Cao Pi pleaded.

"My son, you should know that everyone is busy at the moment. No one would be able to accompany you on your walk..."

"I don't need anyone to accompany me! I can do it alone! I can ride a horse myself, and I wouldn't cause any mess or trouble! I'm already a big boy now. Father, please..." the young boy looked at his father with begging eyes.

Cao Cao thought if he could find anymore excuses that would make his son stay at the castle. He heard that Yuan Shao was about to attack one of his castles, and he was busy. If he let Cao Pi go alone, it might be too risky, considering that Yuan Shao might have spies walking around, and who knows if they would kidnap his heir. He'd lost his first son Cao Ang, and he didn't want to lose Cao Pi. Cao Pi was intelligent, and would make a suitable heir for him.

The military genius thought for a while, and caught a sight of the sky out there. Grey clouds were decorating the horizon. Cao Cao smiled.

"It is going to rain, Zihuan," Cao Cao said with a smirk. "Do you still want to take a walk?"

"Yes! Yes! It's because of the rain I want to go! I love the rain!" Cao Pi said with a kid's happiness on his face. Cao Cao couldn't think of anymore excuses, thus let his eldest son go.

"Fine, then. You may go. But make sure that you would have arrived back at the castle before lunch," Cao Cao sighed.

"Yay! Thank you, Father!" Cao Pi said happily, bowing to his father before he left the room.

"And make sure you'd wear something that can cover you from the rain! I don't want you to be sick just because you're adamant to go for a walk," Cao Cao added as Cao Pi walked out of the room.

"I will, Father," the boy replied as he walked towards his room to take extra clothing to cover himself from the rain as his father told him. Then he walked happily towards the stable. When he arrived at the stable, he went straight to his own horse, and grinned at the groom. The old groom smiled back at the young prince.

"Lord Cao Pi, where are you going? It's going to rain soon," the old man asked.

"I'm going for a walk! It's so boring at the castle! I'm going to be the king someday, and I have to know what's my country like!" Cao Pi explained. "I'm also going outside the country for a bit," he added.

"Ah, well, be careful on the journey, then. And the city and citizens might be very different from what you've imagined. Ah, well," the old man chuckled.

"I will! And I won't be surprised! I've often heard what my teachers and my father's officers talked about the city," Cao Pi told the groom. Cao Pi pressed his heels to his horse's body, telling it to start walking. The horse started walking, and soon it began to gallop. As they exited the castle gates, Cao Pi began to feel excited and his eyes looked everywhere, eager to get a new sight of the world. It was still quite early, not more than seven o'clock in the morning, yet the citizens had began their activity. The shopkeepers were already opening their shops, and the farmers were walking to their rice fields. Everyone bowed at the young prince when he passed. Cao Pi smiled at them, feeling incredibly happy. The horse had marched in the city while its rider was staring at everything keenly. It had begun to rain softly, yet the young boy still enjoyed the air of the city. It felt so different than it was in the castle.

Cao Pi and his horse had taken quite a long walk in the city, and soon they headed to the gate. He would be entering the border of his country and Jiang Dong. He had heard from his teachers about the infamous Chang Jiang river, which is extremely long and was said to be the longest river throughout the land. Outside the gates was a big, big forest, with an air much different compared to the air in the city. Cao Pi enjoyed it very much, inhaling as much as air his lungs could handle. It felt very fresh. The horse was also enjoying the different place, and neighed happily.

* * *

Sun Ce and Da Qiao were still on their horses. As the rain began to fall, Sun Ce laughed.

"Hey, Da Qiao. Look! It rains! It hadn't rained for a long time now, what do you think would happen? Something good, huh?"

Da Qiao smiled.

"Rain had always been a good sign... It brings good luck. Hopefully... This rain would do some for us, too."

Sun Ce laughed again.

"Ha-ha... Of course it would bring us good luck! This rain would be the sign that we would arrive in Wei safely!"

The horses continued to gallop as the rain fell softly upon them.

"We're already close! Faster, horse!" Sun Ce pressed his heels to the horse's body, followed by Da Qiao. The horses galloped faster. As they went closer to the gate of Wei, a figure riding a horse approached them.

"Two people - hm," the figure observed. He stared at Sun Ce and Da Qiao's face for some time, and gave a sharp gasp.

"Uncle! Auntie!" he exclaimed in recognition.

Sun Ce observed the man who claimed to be his nephew-in-law.

"Ah, it's Zixiao's nephew! Zihuan!" Sun Ce recognized his nephew-in-law.

"What are you doing in Wei, Uncle? Aren't you busy governing Jiang Dong?"

Sun Ce thought for a while, and decided that it would be best to tell the problem to Cao Cao himself, and not to Cao Pi, as Cao Pi was still a little boy.

"Ah, it's nothing... I came to see your father! I have some things to be discussed with him -- urgent matters."

"Oh, I see, I see! Please follow me, I'd take you to see him. Father hasn't been busy lately, and I'm sure he would be happy to see you."

Sun Ce and Da Qiao immediately followed Cao Pi. Sun Ce grinned at his wife.

"Who would have thought we'd meet Zihuan? I thought he was to stay at the castle until he becomes the king in the future..."

Cao Pi turned at the mention of his name, and said, "I begged to Father so he would let me go! I was so bored at the castle, there was nothing fun to do! Everyone was busy planning the war, even Mother was helping Father with it... And my brothers are still studying! I've finished mine yesterday, so I'm free today!"

"Oh, you must be a shrewd kid... Finished everything already while everyone else are still studying..." Da Qiao complimented the kid.

"Indeed I am!" Cao Pi said proudly, and added, "Thank you!"

* * *

In the lands of Wu, Zhou Yu, Huang Gai, Taishi Ci and Lu Meng were preparing themselves for their search of Sun Ce.

"Sun Ce... Where could he have gone? And why would he go, anyway?" Zhou Yu mused.

"It's just not like him to go without any reasons. At least he would have told Zhou Yu," Lu Meng said. "Something should be up, something might not be right," he muttered.

"What couldn't be right?!" Taishi Ci intterupted. "He has most everything... He's the current ruler of our country, he has a happy family, he's a strong fighter, he always wins the wars... What could be less?"

Huang Gai chose to remain silent.

"I think," Zhou Yu broke the silence between the men. "There is something threatening Sun Ce, here. That was why he chose to go."

"Something... threatening...? What could be threatening him?!" Taishi Ci was confused.

"I don't know... But Lu Meng was right. He wouldn't have gone without any reasons. But... Him going without telling any of us, he might be in a very dangerous situation. Who knows, anyway," Zhou Yu shrugged. He stood up from his sitting position, "Let's go. The only thing we must do now is to carry out Zhong Mou's order -- to find Sun Ce."

"Yeah, let's go," Taishi Ci agreed with him. The others also rose from their sitting position, and went to collect the men.

* * *

Sun Ce and Da Qiao had at last arrived in Wei, with Cao Cao's young heir Cao Pi. Cao Pi presented the two guests to his father.

"Father, Uncle Bo Fu and Aunt Da Qiao came from Jiang Dong to visit you... Uncle said that he has a secret important thing to discuss with you," Cao Pi told his father.

"Ah, I see, I see... Okay then, Zihuan, you'd better change your clothes and prepare for lunch. I'd talk to our guests first," Cao Cao ordered his son.

"Yes, sir!" the young boy exited the room and ran to his own room. Cao Cao ordered the guards to close the door.

"Ah, it's been quite a long time, isn't it, Sun Bo Fu?" Cao Cao greeted with a wide smile on his face.

Sun Ce grinned at his companion, "Yeah... Who would it be if it isn't me?"

"My son told me you have a private matter to discuss... What would it be?" Cao Cao asked, full of curiosity.

Sun Ce looked left and right, and replied, "If you don't mind, I'd rather speak it up without these guards listening..."

"Ah, I see. Guards, wait outside!" Cao Cao ordered the guards. "So, what is it?"

Sun Ce directly spoke, "May I ask your protection and stay here, in your land of Wei, for a while?"

Cao Cao looked surprise. "Why so suddenly? I heard you are the governor of Jiang Dong?" he asked curiously.

"Ah, it's... It's my brother Zhong Mou," Sun Ce answered.

"Your brother Quan, is it? What's with him?"

"Well... He had some plan with some guy named Yu Ji to kill me... He wanted to poison me to death when I'm sleeping, and I think he knows that I'm escaping and he's sending troops to find me. If I'm staying here, there's nothing he can do, especially if I have your full protection," Sun Ce said frankly.

Having the Little Conqueror on my side would be a very great advantage. And it's not possible that he's a spy, either. First, if what he said just now is true, he brings his wife with him. Second, it's not like there is a ruler who would be sent to be a spy, Cao Cao thought.

"Fine then... You have my full protection and you and your wife may stay with us. But you must abide by our rules and help us out in battles, especially the ones not involving your own land," Cao Cao announced his decision.

"Thank you, Meng De, you have my deepest gratitude," Sun Ce said. "If you had rejected my request, I wouldn't know where I should go."

"Don't think about it too much. Having you on our side would be a great advantage itself, besides, we're still relatives. Surely you still remember the marriage of Zixiao's daughter to your own brother, right?"

"Ah, yes, of course. I went here because I had remember about that," Sun Ce admitted. "Anyway, thank you again."

**Yay! They've arrived in Wei! Damn, that chapter was hard to write! I had to edit it several times, plus I'd lost several lines due to my own stupidity so I had to rewrite some sentences... And the lost ones were the ones that were most difficult to write! :p**

**Anyway, I have to explain some things to avoid confusion...**

**1. About the usage of the kingdoms' name  
Until now, I'm still calling "Wu" as "Jiang Dong" and "Wei" as "Cao Cao's land" as I still don't know where is Wei located... This is because technically, the era of Three Kingdoms hadn't started at that time.**

**2. Currently, the incidents are taking place in the year 199, right after the Battle of Wu Territory. That explains why Cao Pi is OOC for the meantime, because he was not more than a 12 years old kid then.**

**3. I'm leaning more to the history and the book San Guo Yan Yi (Hokkien: Sam Kok; English: Romance of the Three Kingdoms) than to the story, because many events had changed in the game. For example, in Sun Ce's Musou Mode in DW 5, he lived until the Battle of Xia Kou, while he actually should have died. The same had happened in the others' Musou Mode... I'm just too lazy to explain everything :p**

**4. I am and will be using courtesy names and childhood names instead of only the names which are used in the game. My reason is, courtesy names sound much more familiar when they address each other, and so are childhood names. I am providing the list of courtesy and childhood names I use in each chapter, but in the upcoming chapters, I'm not repeating myself with the names I have written.**

**List of Courtesy Names (currently no childhood names are being used):**

**(Sun) Bo Fu: Sun Ce  
(Sun) Zhong Mou: Sun Quan  
(Cao) Meng De: Cao Cao  
(Cao) Zihuan: Cao Pi  
(Cao) Zixiao: Cao Ren**

**I might have missed some names, so please tell me if I do and I would add them to the list. Anyway, thanks for reading and please review! I do need feedbacks!**


	3. The Banquet

**A New Kingdom**

**Chapter 3: The Banquet**

The room was full of Cao Cao's most trusted generals, advisors, tacticians and some of his family. There were people playing Chinese traditional music instruments such as _er hu _ and _gu zheng_, young female dancers and Chinese opera singers. A lot of food were served: roasted pork, various kinds of seafood and vegetables, _man tou_, soup, rice, noodles and even some special dishes that can usually be seen in special occasions such as Chinese New Year and other festivals. _Jiu_, or better known as rice wine or _sake_ in China's neighboring country Japan was served in front of the people. The guests were eating, chattering and laughing among themselves.

Xiahou Dun stood up, holding his wine cup in his hands and exclaimed, "For the arrival of Sun Ce, _gan bei_!"

As Xiahou Dun exclaimed, the guests all stood up, also holding their cups in their hands and shouted, "_Gan bei!"_ Then all began to empty their cups.

After emptying his own cup, Cao Cao, who was sitting in his own throne in front of the room, cleared his throat and began speaking, "This banquet is for celebrating Sun Ce's arrival in our land and to welcome him. He is now a part of us. He will now fight for us and kill our enemies."

The guests cheered and applaused.

"Please enjoy yourselves," Cao Cao added before sitting back.

Everyone continued enjoying their meals and talking to each other. One of the Generals, Cao Ren, opened his mouth to speak, "Lord Sun Ce, I would like to ask you a question."

Sun Ce put his chopsticks down and turned to Cao Ren, "Yes?"

"You've had a land, a family, a beautiful palace to live in, and why did you leave everything and went to Lord Cao Cao?" Cao Ren asked.

Sun Ce sighed and explained everything, how he had overheard his younger brother's conversation with Yu Ji to assassinate him, how Sun Quan had planned to take the throne for himself that night.

"I really never thought that it would be Quan that betrays me. He's a quiet, kind brother, always silent and obedient. It's hard to believe that he turned to be greedy and power hungry," Sun Ce added to end his story.

Everyone remained silent after Sun Ce finished, including the musicians. The room became very quiet while at last one of them broke the silence, "But it's a good thing, huh? At least he found out that his brother wanted to assassinate him so he could escape. If he hadn't overheard that conversation, he would have been killed."

Everyone turned to see who was speaking. It was Xiahou Yuan, who was grinning broadly. He introduced himself to Sun Ce, "I'm Xiahou Yuan, Lord Cao Cao's cousin and one of his generals. It's a pleasure for me to meet you, Lord Sun Ce."

Soon everyone began talking again as though nothing had happened, and they watched the opera singer and the dancers in awe as they performed songs. All the performers were performing in high spirits. They enjoyed watching the performance, and the performers enjoyed performing. Everyone clapped their songs once a song ended.

Meanwhile, in the palace, Cao Pi was woken up because of the noisy sounds from the banquet hall. He looked outside the window of his room and looked at the moon. He sighed, "I really wish I could join Father and his people in the banquet… It must be fun there…"

The banquet continued until past midnight, and Cao Pi had fallen asleep again. The noises from the banquet hall could still be heard, and the moon was still shining brightly. The night sky was clear and cloudless, though a bit windy.

A soldier of Cao Cao's army rushed into the banquet hall, and bowed in front of Cao Cao. Apparently, he was one of the guards.

Cao Cao raised an eyebrow, "What happened?"

The soldier raised his head and announced, "I just received news from the spy in Yuan Shao's army. Yuan Shao will lead an attack to Guan Du Castle today, at dawn."

Cao Cao frowned, asked several questions to know more of the details and dismissed the soldier. He stood up again and announced to the guests, "I am very sorry, but I have to end our banquet here. It seems that Yuan Shao's army will attack Guan Du castle not long from now, and our army has to prepare to defend Guan Du."

The guests began to leave the room, while the generals, tacticians and advisors remained. They discussed about what to do, and decided to leave in an hour and see the conditions in Guan Du first.

Cao Cao turned to Sun Ce, "This would be your chance to prove yourself to us."

Sun Ce nodded.

**A/n: At last, the third chapter! This is the shortest chapter I've written, and I'm sorry for that. I know it's been more than one month or nearly two months since the date I promised I'd update! I'm very sorry. I know this might not be worth the wait, but life's been busy and I had a writer's block on how to bridge Sun Ce's arrival and the Battle of Guan Du. Yes, you heard that. Next chapter will be the Battle of Guan Du, be prepared if you like actions! **


	4. Battle of Guan Du Castle

**ANK 4**

**A/n: Sorry for the very long wait, I mean, it's been months since I last updated! Real life has been hectic and crazy... And this chapter is very hard to write. I have never written battles before. Well, I hope it's not _that_ bad and... this is the longest chapter I have ever written! xD I hope you all like it.**

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* * *

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**Chapter 4: Battle of Guan Du Castle**

Cao Cao's army had marched to Guan Du right after the post-party briefing, but they found no traces of Yuan Shao's army attempting to attack them. The troops had been confused, but Cao Cao only frowned and said nothing. He dismissed his soldiers and told them to get some rest.

A week had passed, and there were still no signs of Yuan Shao's army attacking. Yuan Shao's camps had been spotted the second day Cao Cao arrived in Guan Du, but it seemed as if Yuan Shao had gone there for camping instead of for conquering a castle. Privates had been sent over to spy and observe Yuan Shao's soldiers, but they gained nothing. On the eight day of their wait, a gate guardian reported to Cao Cao the nothingness he saw just like the days before.

Cao Cao thought hard for several minutes, and suddenly, laughter erupted from his moustache-covered lips. Cao Cao's advisors, strategists and soldiers who had gathered in the room stared as if their leader had lost his sanity. What if… What if Lord Cao Cao were becoming insane after the long wait? But Cao Cao stared back at his men as if they were the one turning crazy, not him. Then he boomed into another wave of laughter.

"Let's wait some more time," he said to everyone present in the room, "Yes, let's wait for old Yuan Shao's strategy, and he'd see that it wouldn't work on us! It would never!"

If the men weren't convinced that Cao Cao had turned insane, now they were. Their lord just didn't sound like himself today… Maybe he'd caught a sickness? They looked at Cao Cao worriedly. But Cao Cao said nothing more and dismissed them all.

The troops waited as Cao Cao had told them to. Cao Cao had said to act as if they were waiting for nothing and to do the household and security business as on normal conditions. Everyone obliged, though none understood what Cao Cao meant or wanted. But there were no questions asked, and all did their duties as though Cao Cao was only paying a holiday visit to Guan Du.

A month had passed, and nothing happened. More weeks passed by, and soon enough, everyone in the castle had forgotten their initial reason to be in Guan Du. Soon it had been two months, three months, and no one had realized that six months had finally passed.

On the second week of the sixth month, Cao Cao assembled all his soldiers.

"My soldiers," he said. "I know it seemed like we've been wasting our time – maybe we really have. We shouldn't have rushed here since it was what Yuan Shao wanted, but anyway, we should be glad that we did not come back to the capital because that would be when Yuan Shao would overtake this castle."

He looked sharply at his soldiers before he continued, "Yuan Shao is now waiting for us to go from here – he wants to look as if he is not intending to attack us. But his approach tells us all, and by the observation we have done in the past six months we can tell that this is one of his useless tactics. As I said, he wanted to attack this castle when we are not here and by the time we arrive here if we had went, it would be too late. But unfortunately, we have messed up with his plans."

He paused, looking at the men once more.

"Now I want several of you to disguise as Yuan Shao's soldier and infiltrate their defenses. You should become spies and report to us. After we have the information we want, in one or two months I hope, we will commence attack to his camp in Wu Chao."

He then called the names of his generals and told them to select one hundred and fifty men for this mission.

The selected soldiers went to Yuan Shao's camp, infiltrated it, spied it and sent the information they gained to Cao Cao. In two months, Cao Cao was satisfied with the amount of information he received, and he told his spies that they were about to commence the attack. He ordered more soldiers to disguise as Yuan Shao's men and attack from the inside, while preparing the frontal attack himself. Sun Ce was among the men that would be participating in the battle.

In the battle overview, Cao Cao announced that he would be taking his now-eldest son Cao Pi to the battle. "My eldest son is now almost fourteen years of age, and he should know what a battle his. He should witness what his father does." In the age of thirteen years and six months, Cao Pi was an intelligent and witty young man. He was adept in sword fighting, and his father had promised to take him to his next battle. Cao Cao assigned him as a member of the defense team, and Cao Pi was very proud and happy. His late elder brother Cao Ang had never gotten this privilege.

Soon, Cao Cao's men found themselves on the battlefield. Yuan Shao's army was much larger than theirs, but no one was afraid. They were sure with the leadership of Cao Cao and the spies sent to disrupt the army, Yuan Shao would have no chance to win. Sun Ce, too, found himself on the battlefield.

_My first battle as a part of Cao Cao's army… _Sun Ce thought. _This is a chance for me to prove myself and my abilities._

Yuan Shao was attacking Guan Du Castle full force, just as how the soldier had reported to Cao Cao in the middle of the banquet. And Cao Cao's army had just arrived in time to defend the castle. Sun Ce immediately gained Cao Cao's trust and gained command over 200 soldiers, under his own banner.

In the midst of the battle, Sun Ce stood proudly, holding his spear in hand. Neither Cao Cao nor Xiahou Dun had given command for him and his army to attack, and Sun Ce stood there, waiting. He heard news that the much renowned Guan Yu, a general from Liu Bei's army, had joined the battle to assist Cao Cao.

An order to attack was given, and Sun Ce commanded his men to move.

Sun Ce grinned as he saw Yuan Shao's soldiers running forward, shouting their battle cries and swinging their swords and spears around. He lunged forward himself, signaling for his troops to do the same. As he came face to face with several foot soldiers, he swung his spear, slashing one of the foot soldiers from his left shoulder to his right stomach. The soldier collapsed.

_One_, Sun Ce counted inwardly.

He then turned around as another soldier attempted to wound him with his sword. He quickly stabbed that soldier in his abdomen with his spear, pulling his mighty weapon in a second. The second soldier fell.

_Two,_ he thought.

Before another soldier had the chance to attack or even attempt to attack him, Sun Ce turned swiftly and killed two soldiers at once by slashing his spear at them, slitting their necks.

_Three, four, _he added two more people to his enemy death count. And quite soon enough, the amount of enemy soldiers in his death count had multiplied and was continuing to multiply. Sun Ce grinned. It's not like he enjoyed killing and watching the people's deaths, really, he just enjoyed the fighting in a way. And tonight, he was enjoying it even more (the fight), as it was the really perfect time to loose all his tensions.

On a different part of the battlefield, the famous "God of War", Guan Yu, was swinging his very famous Guan Dao at Yuan Shao's troops. He wore a frown on his face which made him look like he was thinking very deeply. Once in a while he would stop swinging his blade to stroke his famous long beard, stroking it like a wise old man, his frown deepening, while he observed the battlefield with a facial expression like a philosopher's.

Whispers of "It is the renowned God of War, Guan Yu! It is Liu Bei and Zhang Fei's brother!" could be heard among Yuan Shao's troops. They were delighted to see and face such a famous enemy, but scared for their lives at the same time. Nevertheless, the soldiers lunged forward bravely, still shouting their war cries enthusiastically while attempting to land an attack on Guan Yu's muscled body, although that was almost impossible, for Guan Yu was the "god of war". Until now, there wasn't a foot soldier who had successfully given him a scratch.

Guan Yu's face twisted into something weird-looking, like a combination of a frown and a very wide smile. Once again, he swung his large odd-shaped blade, killing several foot soldiers in one move only. The other soldiers gasped as they saw their comrades getting killed only in one swift movement. Some of them had their eyes flashing in anger and lunged at Guan Yu. But unfortunately, they were just not strong enough to oppose the mighty war god.

The angry soldiers died before they had the chance to blink or even squint. At this sight, several soldiers ran in fear of their lives, leaving their comrades behind.

"So chicken-hearted and unfaithful," Guan Yu grunted under his breath, commenting on what he just saw.

And while Guan Yu continued to kill and wound Yuan Shao's troops, an enemy general stepped forward boldly. His right hand was gripping a sword tightly. Calmly, he said, "So you're the renowned god of war, Guan Yu."

Guan Yu discarded the blood from his blade by swinging his blade away, and turned to face the person who talked to him. His eyes narrowed. _Yan Liang of Yuan Shao's army_, he thought. He then replied, "Yes, I am."

The famous general, Yan Liang, frowned for a while, and spoke, "I am truly honored to be able to face you in battle like this." His right leg stepped a bit forward, making a fighting stance.

Guan Yu tensed at this movement. He prepared his own stance, still narrowing his eyes. He didn't seem to be troubled even the slightest bit. He seemed a little too confident to Yan Liang's likeness. Even so, Yan Liang didn't say anything more.

After a moment of silence of studying the enemy for both parties, Yan Liang finally spoke up again, "So, shall we begin?"

Guan Yu made a sound that sounded like an annoyed snort, but nodded nevertheless. He spun his Guan Dao elegantly (and almost arrogantly) and prepared a stance himself. The two men walked in a circle, still in their stances, observing each other with glares that would definitely murder the person they were glaring at if looks could kill. They continued walking in circles and glaring at each other for a while, before Yan Liang finally lunged forward and tried to slash Guan Yu with his sword.

_Too hasty, _Guan Yu thought. He grunted his annoyance once more and swung his blade at Yan Liang's waist, slashing the man into two. Guan Yu looked at the dead body once more time and thought, _when they said Yan Liang was one of Yuan Shao's best generals, I thought he would be more challenging. Who would have thought he would be this shallow? _Guan Yu snorted and turned his back away from Yan Liang's dead body, looking for another enemy.

Meanwhile, Sun Ce had killed or wounded about two hundred soldiers tonight, and he came face-to-face with the leader of the soldiers he fought: Yuan Shao's well-known Wen Chou.

"Well, if it isn't the young and famous Sun Ce," Wen Chou greeted with his rough voice, "Why are you in Cao Cao's army?"

_He's very blunt_, Sun Ce thought. Anyway, he did not want everyone to know Sun Quan's plan so he only said, "It's none of your business. And what do I owe to have the honor to face the famous General Wen Chou? I was told that nobody could equal your fighting skills other than General Yan Liang."

Wen Chou laughed. "Ha-ha, I am stronger than Yan Liang," he said. "Back to the topic, why are you fighting for Cao Cao? Aren't you on good terms with Lord Yuan Shao?"

"Whether I am on good terms with Lord Yuan Shao or not is not the matter, it's not important," Sun Ce replied.

Wen Chou said, "Maybe it isn't. Well, do I get the honor of testing your famous skills? People say that you are young yet strong and good in combat."

"I am honored to be praised such by General, but I'm afraid you have to test my skills by yourself, since I can't measure my own skills," Sun Ce replied humbly.

"Well then, shall we?" Wen Chou said. He signed the rest of his men not to disturb his and Sun Ce's fight.

Sun Ce said nothing. He also signed for his troops not to take part in the fight. His troops eagerly engaged combat with Wen Chou's, leaving some space for Sun Ce and Wen Chou.

Both spearmen walked in a circle just like how two combatants usually began their fight, but none of the two were as patient as Guan Yu or Yan Liang from the previous fight. Wen Chou soon lunged himself at Sun Ce, swinging his spear which was parried by Sun Ce.

"Ho, not bad," Wen Chou complimented, grinning.

"Thank you. And you too," Sun Ce replied.

The two continued to have a fight of basic moves, until Wen Chou surprised Sun Ce with an unexpected slash. Sun Ce wasn't caught off guard, though, since he dodged the attack.

"That was quite a dodge for a young man," Wen Chou commented as he nodded. "Most wouldn't have known the attack was coming."

"I'm different from most young men," Sun Ce said. "I mean, I've been trained."

"So are the other young men I was talking about," Wen Chou said, still complimenting the younger warrior, attempting to distract him from the fight as he thought of another surprise move.

"Then I am honored for the compliment," Sun Ce said.

Soon Sun Ce began using his special moves too, and the older man began to tire. But Sun Ce, having the advantage of his young age, was still strong, fit and prepared.

"That's quite a stamina for an old man to have," it was Sun Ce's time to compliment the older general. "I'm sure my late father did not have such stamina."

Wen Chou replied shortly, "I've been training."

"Sure you have been," Sun Ce responded. "Honing the skills is important, so my dear friend Zhou Yu often says."

"Zhou Yu? Oh, I've heard of him," Wen Chou said, still blocking Sun Ce's easy but powerful attacks. If this were to continue until one more hour, he wouldn't have the stamina to continue. "He is a strategist, isn't he? He is quite a topic in our castle."

"He'll be happy to hear that," Sun Ce grinned. If he could ever meet Zhou Yu again, he would definitely tell him the praise, although he was sure it was not a sincere one…

The two men were concentrating seriously into their fight when an order to fall back was issued by Cao Cao. Yuan Shao's larger army had made moves that would destroy Cao Cao's in no time if the castle was not defended.

Sun Ce bade the opponent he hadn't a chance to defeat farewell, "Well then, I must go now. I hope I will have another chance to face you next time!"

"Likewise," Wen Chou replied. "That fight was quite impressive. I can't wait for the chance to witness and fight against it again."

Weirdly enough, Wen Chou let Sun Ce go instead of attempting to finish him like normal generals would do. But Sun Ce gathered the remaining of his soldiers and quickly left the place, just in case Wen Chou would change his mind...

They had to take a detour as Yuan Shao's troops blocked the main way to the castle. When Sun Ce arrived and blended with the defense soldiers, he was quickly filled in of what had happened.

"The offense troops were fighting Yuan Shao's men pretty easily when suddenly a real big army marched and backed the enemy up. It appears that Yuan Shao's forces got reinforcement... Anyway, they fought real hard and we were forced to reinforce into the castle. The enemy was really quick and our defenses were easily penetrated, and that's how we ended up with the current condition: Yuan Shao's men hanging on the ropes, climbing the walls of this castle."

Sun Ce nodded, and begun to take position right behind the walls. The other soldiers were shooting arrows at the climbing soldiers. Sun Ce took his spear and began to cut as many ropes as he could. The soldiers started to fall and the defense team shot arrows at them, killing the fallen men.

Soon the attempt to infiltrate the castle ended, but that did not mean Guan Du castle was completely safe. Yuan Shao's men kept coming from everywhere, overflowing the battlefield like flood, and Cao Cao's army became concerned. Their arrow supply wouldn't last forever, but it seemed like Yuan Shao's men would. It really seemed like Yuan Shao had an everlasting amount of soldiers...

That was when the tide of the battle changed almost drastically. Suddenly, the rear soldiers of Yuan Shao's army cried, "Wu Chao was destroyed! Wu Chao was destroyed! It was burnt!"

The word spread very quickly on the battlefield, and Yuan Shao's troops were starting to lose their morale. An order to fall back was issued, and one-third of the soldiers began to retreat. Yuan Shao's soldiers' cries of down-heartedness and disappointment became Cao Cao's soldiers' cry of joy. What was left of the offense troops began to push forward and claimed nearly half of the battlefield in no time. Sun Ce's troops also moved forward, heading to clean what was left of Wu Chao.

The soldiers of Cao Cao were almost celebrating their victory when Liu Bei was spotted on the battlefield. It seemed he was aiding Yuan Shao. When Guan Yu heard of this, he quickly announced, "My debts to you have been paid, Lord Cao Cao. I owe you no more. Now I shall join my brother's side – I have been separated from him for too long."

No words could stop Guan Yu from defecting from their side. Cao Cao's troops lost a bit of their morale, but Cao Cao reassured them that they would be okay without Guan Yu. In fact, Guan Yu was not really needed anymore on their side, for he had defeated Yuan Shao's greatest general for them. Now that Yuan Shao's supplies had been reduced to ash, there was nothing much Guan Yu could help, even if he was known as the God of War. Very unfortunately he was not the God of Prosperity or God of Food (if there were one to begin with), as that would be very helpful for Yuan Shao.

Sun Ce and his men continued their march towards Wu Chao, and found Wen Chou and his soldiers wandering around the burnt place.

"It seems fate wants us to reunite and finish our unfinished fight," Sun Ce greeted.

"It seems so," Wen Chou replied, his voice sounding rougher than normal. He had realized that his master would not win in this condition.

"So, shall we continue the unfinished?"

"We should, given that we won't have a third chance to finish," Wen Chou said bluntly.

Sun Ce prepared his stance, and so did Wen Chou. The two of them walked in circles again, observing each other in every movement they made.

Sun Ce was the one to make the first move. He swung his spear at Wen Chou's left side, an attack which Wen Chou parried quite easily. Wen Chou returned the attack, and their attack-and-block pattern continued for a while, just like their first encounter. But Wen Chou did not have as much stamina as he did in the first, and Sun Ce got to wound his left arm. His spear pierced through Wen Chou's hard armor and Wen Chou's injured arm dangled uselessly by his body.

"Impressive," Wen Chou praised. "Up to now the only person to injure me in battle is Yan Liang, and none other has succeeded."

Wen Chou's attacks became weaker because he could only use an arm now, and the blood lost caused him quite an impact. In only twelve minutes, Sun Ce managed to pin the famous general on the ground with his spear.

"So this is it," Wen Chou rasped roughly. "I'm very glad to die in battle, not by sickness or old age that would leave me useless in bed. I am honored to have been killed by a man like you... Sun Ce."

Sun Ce did not finish him off because he knew that Wen Chou would die, even if he got helped. He had lost too much blood, not to mention the large spear wound only two inches away from his heart... Wen Chou perished as Sun Ce drew his spear from his body.

Yuan Shao retreated hastily into his camp in Wu Chao. It still stood on the mercy of the fire. He lost two of his best generals and gained nothing in return. All his food had been burnt and he would have to go back to his own area and recover his army's strength...

And so the battle of Guan Du had ended. This was Yuan Shao's first major lost, only to be followed by further losses in the future. And this was Cao Cao's first step to his powerful reign as well.

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**A/n: And so ends the chapter. I must say I'm quite proud with it... Er, is anyone still reading this? My humblest gratitude for all who stays with me because I know it takes a real lot of patience! And if it isn't too much... Review... please?**


	5. Problem in the Kingdom

**A/n: Yeah, sorry again for the long wait. I believe it has been one year and... one month? I had a huuuuuuuuuuuge writer's block and even thought not to continue, afraid that none of you will read... but anyway, the main purpose is for me to write anyway, and I saw someone updating after 6 years which bounced up my courage a lot *nods* And, nuh, I know the formatting has been messy and un-standard, but I will fix it soon. **

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**A New Kingdom**

**Chapter 5: Problem in the Kingdom**

"News has been received from the Northern Gate."

"Proceed, soldier."

"Cao Cao of the North has won a battle against Yuan Shao near Guan Du Castle. It seems that Yuan Shao wanted to overtake the castle. Guan Yu has been spotted in the battle, first in the Cao's side and later moving to Yuan Shao's side after meeting his brother Liu Bei. And it seems there's a new officer among the ranks of the Cao's; one that killed many soldiers and it was also rumoured that he had killed General Wen Chou."

"What? Wen Chou, killed? That is impossible! Are you sure you heard the news correctly?"

"I did not only hear it, my Lord; I read it with my own two eyes."

Sun Quan heaved a sigh. His mind was already turning – was it possible that the new, mysterious officer of Cao Cao's army was his brother? Yes, he could not deny that his brother Sun Ce was a great combatant. He also could not deny that Sun Ce had great intellect, even though he was rash and brash most of the time. Yes, he could not deny that Sun Ce was the perfect son, the perfect general, the perfect everything…

_Which is what had made you jealous of him, and what had driven you to want to kill him,_ a voice inside young Sun Quan's head whispered.

_No, _Sun Quan retorted in his mind, _I was not, am not and never will be jealous of him. Brother Ce is just too ambitious – he's a threat to the land. I will do what's best for the land and for the people and eliminate every threat, even if the threat is my own brother._

_Admit it, _said the voice, _you're just jealous…_

Taken back to the reality, Sun Quan found the gate guardian staring at him. He then realized he must have spent too long time debating in his head. Assuming the stern role of the leader once more, Sun Quan commanded.

"Very well. You are dismissed, soldier. Find out more about this 'mysterious soldier'. He sounds interesting. We might profit if we can find this soldier and persuade him to join our army."

"Yes, my Lord." The soldier then bowed and left the throne room.

_Once again, you have lied. Not only to yourself this time, but to the soldier, too…_

_Oh, shut up, _Sun Quan berated the Voice. _It is true, for if it is really Brother Ce, it will highly profit our land if we can bring him here and execute him then and there._

_You lie…_ The Voice wavered and gradually disappeared.

Sun Quan bolted down from the throne and paced around the room. No, he knew for sure that he was not lying, not to himself or someone else. Sun Ce was a threat to the Land of Jiang Dong, and therefore he should be removed. But Brother Ce had disappeared from the palace, with no news of him anywhere throughout the country, and this powerful, mysterious soldier appeared out of nowhere, working for Cao Cao, too…

Even in his young age, Sun Quan was a man of intellect. He was praised by many for his mind skills and quick deduction – his father, Zhou Yu and even Lu Meng, the land's strategist. But he lacked in other areas: he didn't fight as well as his older brother, he lacked the charisma that had made men join his brother's army and he lacked the power in his brother's every movement. This was, at least, Sun Quan's own opinion. He had not been brave enough to seek another's opinion on his combat skills – he had lost to Sun Ce once, and Sun Ce had been such a brilliant warrior that there was no one in the country that did not praise him. Sun Quan, too, was aware of his own lack of charisma. Brother Ce had had this kind of energy that moved people – he had not, or at least he had not done such a thing in his first months of leading Jiang Dong and its people. Sun Ce had been quick in gaining the people's hearts and making them fight for him, winning more and more lands and soldiers, while he, Sun Quan, had done short to nothing so far.

_But this is because Sun Ce had always been so ambitious!_ Sun Quan reasoned to himself. _I am taking things slower. The rash things Brother does always brings us to peril. Such ambition surely brings only danger to the land!_

Suddenly, Zhou Yu entered, interrupting Sun Quan's pacing.

"Lord Sun Quan," saluted Zhou Yu, bowing.

"Rise up, Brother Yu. You don't need to salute me; you are my brother, too," Sun Quan scratched the back of his head, uncomfortable in facing his brother's best friend. Zhou Yu was an adept strategist and was somewhat good in reading the human's mind – a quality that should be possessed by strategists. He was afraid that Zhou Yu would be able to figure what he had originally planned.

Apparently, Sun Quan need not fear. At least not now, for Zhou Yu didn't seem to suspect anything – yet. "My Lord, you are too kind."

Sun Quan dismissed Zhou Yu's expression of formality and inquired about his visit instead. "What have brought you here, Brother Yu?"

"I brought news from the city."

"Please elaborate, Brother Yu."

"I received reports from the civil officers that the citizens are questioning the absence of Lord Sun Ce."

"Yes, yes. The disappearance of Brother Ce is really unsettling. I still don't get it, why did he disappear all of a sudden? It just seems like he vanished into… thin air," Sun Quan sat down on the throne, his fingers rubbing his chin. He imitated the expression of a truly confused man.

"Exactly, my Lord, but only he did not vanish into thin air _himself_; he brought Lady Da, two of the horses and his possessions, too," Zhou Yu observed.

_Ah, this is leading on the right way, _thought Sun Quan, _Brother Yu would soon think Brother Ce's disappearance as a betrayal… about which I'm not completely sure of, but if I can convince Brother Yu and the others that Brother Ce was and is a traitor… _

"Which makes the matter more complicated. I would have thought him kidnapped, but surely kidnappers do not bring along the victim's wife and possessions?"

Zhou Yu seemed to think for a while, and nodded his agreement. "Precisely, my Lord, but that insinuates that Lord Sun Ce has run away. What does he have to run away from? He has everything – position, a beautiful wife and a happy family. Can something be lacking?"

_Yes, _Sun Quan thought, _keep on thinking that way, and soon you'll also see how Brother Ce is a corrupt, power-hungry leader. Fortunately he disappeared, so the land is safe from such a corrupt leader._

Sun Quan rubbed his chin again. "Yes, yes. He couldn't possibly have run away. After all, he had had everything… Well, he did bring Sister Da with him. I am curious of why he left the castle anyway. If he wanted to start everything anew he wouldn't have brought Sister Da with him."

Zhou Yu appeared to be thinking for a while, and nodded. He then approached another pressing matter. "What should we do about the citizens, then? They are getting antsy over the disappearance of Lord Sun Ce."

Sun Quan rubbed his chin more, trying to appear wise, and came to a decision. "If nobody finds him after two weeks, we shall declare him dead. Let's just say someone unknown assassinated him and Sister Da in their sleep, and stole one of the horses as a manner of escape. We shall even prepare the coffin to be burned."

"That appears to be a good idea, my Lord. But what if Lord Sun Ce reappeared in the future, or someone found his corpse or his kidnapper released him?"

Sun Quan thought more. "That… shall be… difficult. But I am somewhat sure that he won't be reappearing – if he had been kidnapped, after all, the kidnapper would have asked for ransom. If someone found his corpse, then we shall cremate him, too, in the proper manner also, saying that we may have found the wrong body before. But if he had been running away, the Heaven knows from what, I don't think he shall be coming back."

"True, true," Zhou Yu agreed. "Your judgement is always faultless, Lord Sun Quan. Even a strategist such as I couldn't have thought of such a solution."

Sun Quan pretended to be sorry. "You were close with my brother, General, even closer than I had been with him, and we were very close compared to other brothers. You couldn't accept the thought of him being dead in any way that we have not discovered him or his body."

Zhou Yu bowed and saluted. "You are too kind, my Lord."

Sun Quan stood up again and looked outside the room, glancing at the outdoor. "It's getting late, General. I'm sure you have some other matters to take care of."

Zhou Yu took the hint, knowing that Sun Quan probably wanted to be left alone. "Yes, my Lord."

"You are dismissed," Sun Quan commanded. Zhou Yu bowed and took his leave.

_Yes, this is good,_ Sun Quan thought to himself. _Brother Yu has begun to understand, and soon it will spread. Everyone will know and no one will mourn the loss of Brother Ce, the power-hungry ruler, anymore. And I shall shine and make the land rise! _

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**A/n: Next one should be up quicker, and I'm thinking of rewriting (or semi-rewriting, depends on the condition) the first four chapters, just to match the styles, formatting. And... so... is it too much if I ask for your reviews? Comments, opinions, "I lurve this" or "I hate this"s... anything that tells me that you're there! Please? :3**


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